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thepeoplesrecord: Google+ demonstrates deforestation and other...

Sun, 19 May 2013 13:36:08 -0500

Google+ demonstrates deforestation and other man-made climate disasters with satellite images
May 18, 2013

It’s one thing to talk about deforestation, disappearing habitats, and shrinking glaciers and water resources, and another thing entirely to demonstrate it with actual satellite imagery. And thanks to Landsat images and the Google Earth Engine, we’re getting a glimpse at some key locations across the planet as they are changed by the hands of man. A series of interactive timelapse GIFs that use Landsat satellite data to display massive changes to the Earth’s surface could be a potent tool for motivating individuals and organizations to take action on key issues.

Google’s Animated GIFs of Earth Over Time focuses our attention on key features of our planet, such as the Amazon rainforest, the coal beds of Wyoming, the Columbia Glacier, the Aral Sea, and the deserts of Saudi Arabia.

Today, we’re making it possible for you to go back in time and get a stunning historical perspective on the changes to the Earth’s surface over time. Working with the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), NASA and TIME, we’re releasing more than a quarter-century of images of Earth taken from space, compiled for the first time into an interactive time-lapse experience. We believe this is the most comprehensive picture of our changing planet ever made available to the public.

- Google

Some of the visualizations are kind of subtle, and need to be put into context to really hit home (such as the massive increase in irrigated areas in Saudi Arabia, which affects local water supplies, or the urban sprawl of Las Vegas, which also puts increased demands on local resources), but some of them, such as this one documenting the rapidly disappearing rainforest in the Brazilian Amazon, speak for themselves:

Explore a global timelapse of our planet, constructed from Landsat satellite imagery. The Amazon rainforest is shrinking at a rapid rate to provide land for farming and raising cattle. Each frame of the timelapse map is constructed from a year of Landsat satellite data, constituting an annual 1.7-terapixel snapshot of the Earth at 30-meter resolution.

- Google Earth Engine

These interactive time-lapse images can be manipulated by pausing or zooming in to them, as we’ve come to expect from Google Earth, and may serve as a pivot point for those who are on the fence about the effects that our booming population and its increased demand for resources has on our Big Blue Marble.

Source

You can view all of the images at Google +, and you can read a backstory at TIME.

Accenture Survey Shows Innovation ROI Remains Elusive

Fri, 17 May 2013 09:18:34 -0500

“Only 34 percent believe their company has a well-defined innovation strategy, 46 percent say they have become more risk averse in considering new ideas and 45 percent see their company pursuing a portfolio of smaller, safer opportunities rather than seeking the next breakthrough. On a variety of measures—initial idea generation, product development, manufacturing, testing, commercialization and launch, portfolio optimization and realizing a positive ROI from innovation—executives are less satisfied today than in 2009.”

"Americans drive fewer total miles today than we did eight years ago, and fewer per person than we..."

Wed, 15 May 2013 09:33:14 -0500

““Americans drive fewer total miles today than we did eight years ago, and fewer per person than we did at the end of Bill Clinton’s first term. The unique combination of conditions that fueled the Driving Boom—from cheap gas prices to the rapid expansion of the workforce during the Baby Boom generation—no longer exists.””

- New Direction | U.S. PIRG

The Web's Next Phase?

Tue, 14 May 2013 09:27:00 -0500

The first wave of the web was all about getting online. The second wave was about connecting online (social media, Facebook). Now, we’re on the precipice of a third wave, one that’s about taking those online connections and manifesting them in the real world.

(via FRED® All Employees: Information: Publishing Industries,...

Mon, 13 May 2013 08:24:47 -0500

(via FRED® All Employees: Information: Publishing Industries, Except Internet)

"Virtually every automobile ride, every plane trip and, in most places, every flip of a light switch..."

Sun, 12 May 2013 15:37:02 -0500

““Virtually every automobile ride, every plane trip and, in most places, every flip of a light switch adds carbon dioxide to the air, and relatively little money is being spent to find and deploy alternative technologies.””

"according to the researchers, the shallower penetration of new technologies in the third world..."

Sun, 12 May 2013 13:55:29 -0500

““according to the researchers, the shallower penetration of new technologies in the third world explains of their economic lag: “changes in the pattern of technology diffusion account for 80 percent of the Great Income Divergence between rich and poor countries since 1820.””

- Interesting analysis..the argument from researchers is tech hasn’t been “embedded as deeply.”

"That’s a Mother’s Day gift – something my kids craft with their own brains and brawn."

Sun, 12 May 2013 12:24:04 -0500

““That’s a Mother’s Day gift – something my kids craft with their own brains and brawn.””

- Mother’s Day: What I Really Want Is Priceless

"Most know that their strategy going forward will have to balance two imperatives. They have to..."

Sat, 11 May 2013 14:49:59 -0500

““Most know that their strategy going forward will have to balance two imperatives. They have to protect the turf they already own — today’s product business — while pursuing growth through service offerings that leverage the fact that the product is in place to offer a richer overall value proposition to customers.””

- Good piece on the challenges and opportunities around the “internet of things.”

"As a built environment, South Lamar is no Champs Elysees. But its chaotic streetscape is home to..."

Sat, 11 May 2013 10:59:42 -0500

““As a built environment, South Lamar is no Champs Elysees. But its chaotic streetscape is home to iconic South Austin businesses – Matt’s El Rancho, the Saxon Pub – and trendy newer eateries – Uchi, Olivia, Barley Swine. Local boutiques, yoga studios, and houseware emporiums have moved into low-rent industrial centers, and tried to spruce them up. The market is there: The Bouldin, Zilker and South Lamar neighborhoods are hot.””

- We’ll have a rental in this area soon..email me if you know someone interested.

(via Pinterest)

Fri, 10 May 2013 09:15:19 -0500

(via Pinterest)

"The argument, it’s worth clarifying, is not simply that cheap housing makes a metro area..."

Thu, 09 May 2013 09:12:54 -0500

““The argument, it’s worth clarifying, is not simply that cheap housing makes a metro area attractive; if that were true the Midwest would be booming. It is that a very elastic housing supply in the face of steady demand will allow for massive population growth.””

- Migration: Heliocentric America | The Economist

"Consumer Reports rates the Tesla Model S a 99 out of 100 points. It is the first time since 2007 the..."

Thu, 09 May 2013 09:08:44 -0500

““Consumer Reports rates the Tesla Model S a 99 out of 100 points. It is the first time since 2007 the firm has given a rating that high for a vehicle it reviewed.””

- Consumer Reports: Tesla Model S Among Best Ever Reviewed

Tragic..just hope this will make people think.

Wed, 08 May 2013 14:27:09 -0500

Tragic..just hope this will make people think.

Love this guitar made out of string. http://bit.ly/17G8FdU

Sun, 05 May 2013 12:49:58 -0500

Love this guitar made out of string. http://bit.ly/17G8FdU

"Mr Nova reckons it would cost around $3 billion to make safe all 5,000 clothing factories in..."

Sun, 05 May 2013 08:49:43 -0500

““Mr Nova reckons it would cost around $3 billion to make safe all 5,000 clothing factories in Bangladesh. Spread over a few years, that would amount to only a few cents on the cost of each garment produced..””

- Workplace safety: Avoiding the fire next time | The Economist

Bouncing around the Capitol.

Sat, 04 May 2013 15:31:07 -0500

Bouncing around the Capitol.

Real men are still using reel mowers.

Sat, 04 May 2013 10:11:59 -0500

Real men are still using reel mowers.

"America’s economic growth since 2007 is mostly population-driven. Outside a few highly skilled tech..."

Sat, 04 May 2013 08:40:01 -0500

““America’s economic growth since 2007 is mostly population-driven. Outside a few highly skilled tech cities, rises in output per person contributed little to GDP. Instead, output and jobs are following the people, and the people are again following the sun.””

- The economic performance of cities: Following the sun | The Economist

"We argue that the shift from being a goods-producing, manufacturing-based economy to a service..."

Fri, 03 May 2013 16:31:34 -0500

““We argue that the shift from being a goods-producing, manufacturing-based economy to a service economy—what some have termed “deindustrialization”—is causing the pace of economic recoveries to slow. As is typical of economies recovering from the bursting of an asset bubble and a financial crisis, the recovery from the 2007 recession would be longer than usual. But our research suggests that the rise of the service sector has made it even longer than in the past.””

- More Services Means Longer Recoveries | Institute for New Economic Thinking (INET)